MY GRANDPARENTS AND MY DNA

By Judy Ann Davis

MY GRANDPARENTS AND MY DNA

Treasures may be tangible or intangible. They can be held in the hand or simply stored in the mind. My treasure for today is stored in my mind.

Recently, I took the plunge and had my DNA tested. I knew all four of my grandparents emigrated from Poland to the United State shortly before or shortly after the 1900s. I found I was 98% East European/Polish and 2% Finnish. Though surprised by the 2%, I knew from research that the Finnish tribes were the first ones to settle the north Baltic coast of what is today called Poland.

Why my grandparents are a treasure is for their strength, stamina, and bravery to leave their homeland—and everything they owned—to undergo a perilous journey, not in the least comfortable, to a foreign country an ocean away. Then they had to find work, learn English, and become citizens.

Unfortunately, I never really knew three of my grandparents since they died when I was a small child. My paternal grandmother, Victoria, was only sixteen when she boarded a ship in 1906 to come to the U.S. where her sister was already located. Talk about fearless!

Both of my grandfathers worked the mines and owned farms. My Grandfather Lashinski bought a farm in Northeast Pennsylvania which my father and mother later purchased from him and where they raised my sister, brother and me.

It was on this bountiful farm where I scampered over acres of pastures, forests, and fields. A carefree child, I walked on stonewalls build by the Irish in the early 1800s. I splashed in the creek winding through our property, and I caught crayfish and minnows. I daydreamed. I stared at star-filled skies and wondered about the vastness of our universe. I smelled the sweet scent of dried hay, wild roses, and ripe blackberries.

But most of all, I was always safe and never hungry--like many Poles left behind in the “Old Country.” History tell us they had to endure endless domination by other countries as well as the very sorrowful hardships of World War II where 2.7+ million perished.

Without my bold, risk-taking grandparents, I would not be the person I am today. I would never have experienced the wealth of opportunities that living in the United States afforded me. They are a treasure.

So if any of my grandparents are peering down from the heavens above, I’d like to shout out a “Thank you.” And I ask only one small favor: Can any of you tell me which side of the family the 2% Finnish comes from?

Check out Judy Ann’s latest novel:

FOUR WHITE ROSES

BLURB:
     When widower Rich Redman returns to Pennsylvania with his young daughter to sell his deceased grandmother’s house, he discovers Grandmother Gertie’s final request was for him to find a missing relative and a stash of WWI jewels.
     Torrie Larson, single mom, is trying to make her landscape center and flower arranging business succeed while attempting to save the lineage of a rare white rose brought from Austria in the 1900s.Together, the rich Texas lawyer and poor landscape owner team up to rescue the last rose and fulfill a dead woman’s wishes.
     But in their search to discover answers to the mysteries plaguing them, will Rich and Torrie also discover love in each other’s arms? Or will a meddling ghost, a pompous banker, and an elusive stray cat get in their way?

AUTHOR BIO:

Judy Ann Davis holds a degree in Journalism and Communications and has written for industry and education throughout her career. She writes both short stories and contemporary and historical novels. When she’s not behind a computer, you can find her looking for anything humorous to make her laugh or swinging a golf club where the chuckles are few. She is a member of Pennwriters, Inc. and Romance Writers of America, and divides her time between Central Pennsylvania and New Smyrna Beach, Florida.

Visit her on

Her blog: www.judyanndavis.blogspot.com

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https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4353662.Judy_Ann_Davis

Amazon Author Page:  https://www.amazon.com/Judy-Ann-Davis/e/B006GXN502/

Southern Grandma & Small Towns by @JoanReeves #SmartGirlsReadRomance

Occasionally, I post something funny. Since I'm late blogging this morning, I thought I'd share a joke with you. (See the end of the post for a FREE ebook offer.)

Actually, this joke is more than a joke. It's a picture of life in small towns and rural America--and not just in the South.

A friend who grew up with me sent it to me by email a while back. We are both from the same small southern town.

He and I could probably name more than a dozen women, heck, make that two or three dozen, who could be the Southern grandma at the heart of this story.

Let the Joke Begin

Lawyers should never ask a Southern grandma a question if they aren't prepared for the answer. In a trial, a Southern small town prosecuting attorney called his first witness, a grandmotherly, elderly woman to the stand. He approached her and asked, "Mrs. Jones, do you know me?"

She responded, "Why, yes, I do know you, Mr. Williams. I've known you since you were a young boy, and frankly, you've been a big disappointment to me. You lie, you cheat on your wife. You manipulate people and talk about them behind their backs. You think you're a big shot when you haven't the brains to realize you never will amount to anything more than a two-bit paper pusher. Yes, I know you."

The lawyer was stunned! Not knowing what else to do, he pointed across the room and asked, "Mrs. Jones, do you know the defense attorney?"

She again replied, "Why, yes, I do. I've known Mr. Bradley since he was a youngster, too. He's lazy, bigoted, and he has a drinking problem. He can't build a normal relationship with anyone, and his law practice is one of the worst in the entire state. Not to mention he cheated on his wife with three different women. One of them was your wife. Yes, I know him."

The judge asked both attorneys to approach the bench. In a near whisper, he said, "If either of you idiots asks her if she knows me, I'll send you to the electric chair."

In Summation

Yes, that's how it is in small towns. Everyone knows everyone else from cradle to grave. One thing about it, you can't get away with anything in a small town.

That sense of community--the good and the bad--is why I love setting a book in a small town. Recently, I published a romance short story, another in my short reads series A Moment in Time.

Blame It On Chocolate

A Moment in Time is all it takes for Love to be revealed.

Chloe Elliot was the good girl. She’d never been a hell-raiser. Never gotten drunk, used drugs, smoked pot, or slept around. She didn’t even curse!

Since her dad was the son of a minister and the oft-elected mayor, and her mom was the elementary school principal, she'd had no choice but to live a life above reproach. Truthfully, it really hadn’t been that difficult.

Until Hunter Cole returned to his home town.

That was the beginning of Chloe's fall from good girl status. There was just something about the man that addled her brain and created havoc in her body.

Hunter Cole reckoned he had the best of all possible worlds. He'd played for the NFL, and even though two back surgeries had ended that career, he was lucky enough to follow in his dad's footsteps and work the family ranch and also follow his granddad's path and be the sheriff in his west Texas town. Life was perfect.

Until he dropped by the library to say hello to his best friend's little sister.

Chloe wasn't so little any more. In fact, just looking at her made his common sense evaporate. She affected him like no other woman--and he'd had women throwing themselves at him since he was a high school quarterback! If he made a move on her, her brother would nail his hide to the wall. There was only one thing he could do, but did he really want to do that? The thought of it made his bachelor heart shudder with alarm.

This romantic comedy short story, Blame It On Chocolate is only 99cents, and it's available only at Amazon Kindle for now.

Get a free ebook today! Just click to claim yours. Joan is giving away copies of one of her most popular romantic comedies. Just click and follow the prompts.

Joan Reeves is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Sassy, Sexy Contemporary Romance. Her books are available in audio, ebook, and print. All of her books have the same underlying theme: It's never too late to live happily ever after.

Joan lives her happily ever after with her hero, her husband, in the Lone Star State. Visit Joan online: Blog, Website, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube.